Fall Camp Updates 2017

[Teeder11]

6 hours ago, LkvlleUNDFan said:

Me, too.... and Teeder - you can say that your updates aren't necessary with the other people covering the team, but I'll say that I like your updates the best. You cover more ground and you're not trying to write stories, just observations on what you see and updates on what you've learned. Don't get me wrong, I think the other guys do a good job - but they're different, and you fill a niche that they don't. If you get tired of writing them and need a break, that's one thing - but if you don't do an update because you think others have it covered, please reconsider! 

Thanks, guys!  Really means a lot!  I really enjoy being out there, and usually schedule a working vacation around fall camp so I can just pop into work for an hour or two early in the morning and then head out to Memorial Stadium. It's a pleasure to provide a little more insight on things for everyone. I promise tomorrow a full recap on the scrimmage for those who cannot make it out.

Cheers!

 

[geaux_sioux]

7 hours ago, Sioux94 said:

Let's not for get Connor O'Brien lost this off season too, he was the leading tackler last year right?   So in the off season we lost 1. Harris (pro prospect)  2. O'Brien (leading tackler if I recall) 3. Grady (potential pro prospect) granted he wasn't with us last year so hard to fully call that a loss.  Regardless, come November/ December you can't tell me we wouldn't be a more solid team with those guys, 3 starters.   This all before the season even starts, there will surely be other injuries coming.

That said, thankfully we have built more depth and can absorb these injuries better than we could have 2-3 years ago but they still hurt.  Injuries are part of the game though and everybody has them. I saw one NDSU fan on the FB FCS Fans nation page all but throw in the towel when Menard got hurt and out for the year, and they are probably one of the deeper teams in the FCS.  Obviously that guy blew things way out of proportion, NDSU is still a favorite to win it all.   I am still super excited about this year though, and the good thing about these is that they DID occur very early so the team can better prepare and move past it, other guys are getting more reps.  I am already passed the Harris, Grady, and O'Brien not playing this year....but you can't deny the difference they would have made, especially if more serious injuries creep up. 

Bakker was the leading tackler but OBrien was right up there. Donnell and whoever is next to him have big shoes to fill.

[Midwestern Hawk]

39 minutes ago, geaux_sioux said:

Bakker was the leading tackler but OBrien was right up there. Donnell and whoever is next to him have big shoes to fill.

Big shoes for sure.  We should get some idea on that at today's scrimmage.

[Nodak78]

19 days until game day.  Who is going to step up and fill Deion Harris's shoes.  Very big day for some young and talented players to shine.

[Ozzie82]

 I understand some of the offensive position groups are going to play the majority of the scrimmage with the twos and threes.  I am not sure if that is going to be the same throughout the entire team or not. 

[geaux_sioux]

2 minutes ago, Ozzie82 said:

 I understand some of the offensive position groups are going to play the majority of the scrimmage with the twos and threes.  I am not sure if that is going to be the same throughout the entire team or not. 

I don't see why not with how proven the 1s are. I suppose that means the d should dominate too.

[SIOUXFAN97]

considering how special teams costs us a few games last year i don't see enough convo about how they are doing...still think kostitch and or taubs are a issue

[AJS]

1 hour ago, SIOUXFAN97 said:

considering how special teams costs us a few games last year i don't see enough convo about how they are doing...still think kostitch and or taubs are a issue

UND will be a deeper team this year, the kick off coverage got considerably better last year when they started having Reyes, ect... on there. It's not the scheme, but the talent level of the players on it. 

[Midwestern Hawk]

Just now, AJS said:

UND will be a deeper team this year, the kick off coverage got considerably better last year when they started having Reyes, ect... on there. It's not the scheme, but the talent level of the players on it. 

Coaches saying team is much deeper.  Depth at DB and LB especially will help on the coverage units.

[SIOUXFAN97]

32 minutes ago, AJS said:

UND will be a deeper team this year, the kick off coverage got considerably better last year when they started having Reyes, ect... on there. It's not the scheme, but the talent level of the players on it. 

disagree...stony brook almost blocked three punts b4 they finally got one...and won the game bc of it...

[Teeder11]

Thoughts from Saturday morning scrimmage:

Good crowd, great weather... OK football. Two out of three ain't bad, I guess.

Here we go:

• Apart from the those lost for the season, their were a bunch of players who did not participate today due to various conditions, including Dranka, Tamas Stewart, McKinney (hard cast on right forearm), Jade Lawrence, Torrey Hunt, Mikey Geibel, Stanley.
• The morning started out with a "pin the hip" tempo in the red zone, with Studs at QB and Toivonen, Wanzek and Mercer in the receiver slots.
• The OL was as we've stated in the past -- Stockwell, Bell, Rooney, Taylor and Cox
• On the other side of the ball was a heavy defensive front with Tank and Cieslak along with Mason Bennett.
• The linebacking corps comprised Palmborg, Rodgers, Noah Larson and Disterhaupt.
• It was Tyus and Holm at the corners and Reyes and Flowers at safety.
• We will see in the coming weeks how this kind of a line up shuffles around as other players come back into the mix.
• On the first series with Studs at the helm, Evan Holm showed his speed, ability to close quickly and pretty good coverage ability on a number of plays where he forced incompletions.
• Studs started a little slow but got it going on a beautiful wheel route throw to Oliviera out of the backfield who scampered in for a TD.
• Heidelbaugh took over next, connecting with Oliviera on another short slideline pattern in which the powerful back with deceptive speed did the extra hard work to muscle his way in for another TD.
• When Studsrud got his chance again, the senior QB connected with Mercer in the back of the endzone after the O line provided excellent pass pro.
• On Heidelbaugh's next try, the defense rose up. Cieslak powered in for a sack when Heidelbaugh got caught holding the ball too long in pocket.
• Both kickers, Taubenhiem and Leach, were good on their FG attempts for the day.
• Bubba then had his teams line up inside the 5 yard line for a goal-to-go series.
• The defense initially rose up to form an impenetrable wall.
• Then, on a seemingly wrecked play due to a bad snap... FB Coyne alertly located the ball in the scrum at the 1 and worked his way in for a TD.
• After that, the offense gained confidence. RB J.J. and the defensive line played a game of "immovable object versus the Irresistible force," Only this time J.J., as the Irresistible Force, had just enough to power in.  
• On his attempt with in the 5 yard line, Heidelbaugh made good on a quick out to Stetson Carr, who got rocked by Vashon Tucker, but was still able to get the ball over the line for a TD.
• During live scrimmage drills, the emphasis was on the back up QBs (Heidelbaugh and Zimmerman) as well as  J.J. at tailback. 
• Early on at least it was tough sledding for J.J. and his fellow tailbacks (Austin Gordon and Teddy Sherven) as the defense put up a dominating effort.
• If you like defensive football, something that is pretty to watch is when the 3-4 works to perfection as in the d line eats up the blockers and the LBs swoop in for the kill. There was a lot of that initially during the live drills.
• Finally, J.J. did show a flash of what we hope to see much more of this year when he powered through the scrum, found a lane and exploited it for a 40 yard rush down field.
• Izzy Adeoti had a nice day at receiver after Toivonenen, Wanzek and Mercer were done for the day. Lots of quick out patterns, slants and curl routes to the speedy true freshman.
• My Play of the Day goes OLB Ray Haas on the edge, as the Cagey 6-5 Haas blasted his blocker and rushed to within feet of the equally towering Heidelbaugh who just barely had time to attempt a toss out to the flats. Haas was having none of it as the linebacker put up his arms and smashed the ball down and into the turf.
• The Pride of Red River factored in today with what I would have to call the Runner up Play of the Day.  WR Chad Bartosh slipped through coverage and found a seam down field. Heidelbaugh's eyes must have got as big as saucers as the QB slinged a bomb toward Bartosh, who went up to snatch the ball and  run for about a 70 yard pass and catch. The good wheels of S Ty Shannon to catch up to the play was the only thing that prevented a TD.
• On special teams, I think Austin Dussold is really benefitting from having quality competition in camp this year with Meindel. Dussold had a few good booming punts today and looked good. Meindel is a huge asset to have back, though, as he as proven to be a good one in the past. Meindel holds the UND all-time records for overall punt average (43.1) and punt average in a season (44.1). He also is a good athlete in situations where the punter needs to scramble or throw the ball down field. And finally, Meindel has the ability to kick FGs, too. This is important as newcomer Leach as yet to show confidence knocking down routine PAT or FG attempts.
• When Zimmerman got his shot. It was more heavy doses of J.J.
• The offensive line found its oats on this series, too, as they started moving the pile forward.
• J.J. exited a bit early today after a particularly hard run and tackle. He'll be one to watch in coming days to see how he does. The training staff was conducting the old "How many fingers am I holding up" routine with him on the sidelines.
• Today, Zimmerman exhibited a little better pocket presence and awareness to step up compared to Heidelbaugh, IMHO.
• One encourageing sign for the near and longterm future was how freaking impressive the young Offensive linemen did against a pretty salty young defensive line. The line centered by Nguon with Aplin and Sean Russo on the right and Tobin and Helgren on the left absolutely bulldozed the defensive front seven on a QB keeper by Zimmerman. 
• Zimmerman also completed some nice out pattern throws to Carr, Izzy, Pifer and TE Paulson on his final live series, but ultimately they couldn't punch it in.
• Boltmann took charge next, and my big take away from the young QB recruit is that he has a tendency to scramble early when things seem like they're not there instead of letting things develop for a split second more. It should also be said, however, that Boltmann demonstrated the ability to make this work on several plays today. He had some nice gains on improvised QB runs.
• The newest tailback, Teddy Sherven, saw very little daylight to do anything with against a hodgepodge of young swarming back up Linebackers.
• DL Jalen Morrison, Nevermann and Geier were especially noticeable as the running plays were funneled inside and the LBS exploded to the player to blow them up.
• Ketteringham ended the scrimmage with a a nice pass to TE Paulson who got tied up with a pursuing Geier late in the play. The ball got knocked loose and Geier recovered.

If I had to make an assessment, I would have to say that overall, the defense won the day, but the offense had some shining moments. This is not to forget that many of the offensive starters didn't play much beyond the first series or were sitting out altogether.  Same goes for the first line defense.

The boys have a day off tomorrow and are back at it on Monday.

See ya!

 

 

 

 

[Ozzie82]

Outstanding work and much appreciated Teeder!

[Teeder11]

8 minutes ago, Ozzie82 said:

Outstanding work and much appreciated Teeder!

Thanks! You're a quick reader.... sorry about the typos.  They should be cleaned up now for the most part. 

[Midwestern Hawk]

4 minutes ago, Teeder11 said:

Thoughts from Saturday morning scrimmage:

Good crowd, great weather... OK football. Two out of three ain't bad, I guess.

Here we go:

• Apart from the those lost for the season, their were a bunch of players who did not participate today due to various conditions, including Dranka, Tamas Stewart, McKinney (hard cast on right forearm), Jade Lawrence, Torrey Hunt, Mikey Geibel, Stanley.
• The morning started out with a "pin the hip" tempo in the red zone, with Studs at QB and Toivonen, Wanzek and Mercer in the receiver slots.
• The OL was as we've stated in the past -- Stockwell, Bell, Rooney, Taylor and Cox
• On the other side of the ball was a heavy defensive front with Tank and Cieslak along with Mason Bennett.
• The linebacking corps comprised Palmborg, Rodgers, Noah Larson and Disterhaupt.
• It was Tyus and Holm at the corners and Reyes and Flowers at safety.
• We will see in the coming weeks how this kind of a line up shuffles around as other players come back into the mix.
• On the first series with Studs at the helm, Evan Holm showed his speed, ability to close quickly and pretty good coverage ability on a number of plays where he forced incompletions.
• Studs started a little slow but got it going on a beautiful wheel route through to Oliviera out of the backfield who scampered in for a TD.
• Heidelbaugh took over next, connecting with Oliviera on another short slideline pattern in which the powerful back with deceptive speed did the extra hard work to muscle his way in for another TD.
• When Studsrud got his chance again, the senior QB connected with Mercer in the back of the endzone after the O line provided excellent pass pro.
• On Heidelbaugh's next try, the defense rose up. Cieslak powered in for a sack when the Heidelbaugh got caught  holding the ball too long in pocket.
• Both kickers, Taubenhiem and Leach, were good on their FG attempts for the day.
• Bubba then had his teams line up inside the 5 yard line for a goal-to-go series.
• The defense initially rose up to form an impenetrable wall.
• Then, on a seemingly wrecked play due to a bad snap... FB Coyne alertly located the ball in the scrum at the 1 and worked his way in for a TD.
• After that, the offense gained confidence. RB J.J. and the defensive line played a game of "immovable object versus the Irresistible force," Only this time J.J., as the Irresistible Force, had just enough to power in.  
• On his attempt with in the 5 yard line, Heidelbaugh made good on a quick out to Stetson Carr, who got rocked by Vashon Tucker, but was still able to get the ball over the line for a TD.
• During live scrimmage drills, the emphasis was on the back up QBs (Heidelbaugh and Zimmerman) as well as the J.J. at tailback. 
• Early on at least it was tough sledding for J.J. and his fellow tailbacks (Austin Gordon and Teddy Sherven) as the defense put up a dominating effort.
• If you like defensive football, something that is pretty to watch is when the 3-4 works to perfection as in the d line eats up the blockers and the LBs swoop in for the kill. There was a lot of that initially during the live drills.
• Finally, J.J. did show a flash of what we hope to see much more of this year when he powered through the scrum, found a lane and exploited it for a 40 yard rush down field.
• Izzy Adeoti had a nice day at receiver after Toivonenen, Wanzek and Mercer were done for the day. Lots of quick out patterns, slants and curl routes to the speedy true freshman.
• May Play of the Day goes OLB Ray Haas on the edge, as the Cagey 6-5 Haas blasted his blocker and rushed to within feet of the equally towering Heidelbaugh who just barely had to time to attempt a toss out to the flats. Haas was having none of it as the linebacker put up his harms and smashed the ball down and into the turf.
• The Pride of Red River factored in today with what I would have to call the Runner up Play of the Day.  WR Chad Bartosh slipped through coverage and found a seam down field. Heidelbaugh's eyes must have got as big as saucers as the QB slinged a bomb toward Bartosh, who went up to snatch the ball and  run for about a 70 yard pass and catch. The good wheels of S Ty Shannon to catch up to the play was the only thing that prevented a TD.
• On special teams, I think Austin Dussold is really benefitting from having quality competition in camp this year with Meindel. Dussold had a few good booming punts today and looked good. Meindel is a huge asset to have back, though, as he as proven to be a good one in the past. Meindel holds the UND all-time records for overall punt average (43.1) and punt average in a season (44.1). He also is a good athlete in situations where the punter needs to scramble or throw the ball down field. And finally, Meindel has the ability to kick FGs, too. This is important as newcomer Leach as yet to show confidence knocking down routine PAT or FG attempts.
• When Zimmerman got his shot. It was more heavy doses of J.J.
• The offensive line found its oats on this series, too, as they started moving the pile forward.
• J.J. exited a bit early today after a particularly hard run and tackle. He'll be one to watch in coming days to see how he does. The training staff was conducting the old "How many fingers am I holding up" routine with him on the sidelines.
• Today, Zimmerman exhibited a little better pocket presence and awareness to step up compared to Heidelbaugh, IMHO.
• One encourageing sign for the near and longterm future was how freaking impressive the young Offensive linemen did against a pretty salty young defensive line. The line centered by Nguon with Aplin and Sean Russo on the right and Tobin and Helgren on the left absolutely bulldozed the defensive front seven on a QB keeper by Zimmerman. 
• Zimmerman also completed some nice out pattern throws to Carr, Izzy, Pifer and TE Paulson on his final live series, but ultimately they couldn't punch it in.
• Boltmann took charge next, and my big take away from the young QB recruit is that he has a tendency to scramble early when things seem like they're not their instead of letting things development for a split second more. It should also be said, however, that Boltmann demonstrated the ability to make this work on several plays today. He had some nice gains on improvised QB runs.
• The newest tailback, Teddy Sherven, saw very little daylight to do anything with against a hodgepodge of young swarming back up Linebackers.
• DL Jalen Morrison, Nevermann and Geier were especially noticeable as the running plays were funneled inside and the LBS exploded to the player to blow them up.
• Ketteringham ended the scrimmage with a a nice pass to TE Paulson who got tied up with a pursuing Geier late in the play. The ball got knocked loose and Geier recovered.

If I had to make an assessment, I would have to say that overall, the defense won the day, but the offense had some shining moment. This is not to forget that many of the offensive starters didn't play much beyond the first series or were sitting out altogether.  Same goes for the first line defense.

The boys have a day off tomorrow and are back at it on Monday.

See ya!

 

 

 

 

Thanks for the update.  Sounds like things are coming along pretty well.  In your opinion who are the guys that will have their red-shirts pulled and play this year?

[Teeder11]

5 minutes ago, Midwestern Hawk said:

Thanks for the update.  Sounds like things are coming along pretty well.  In your opinion who are the guys that will have their red-shirts pulled and play this year?

Man, this is always tough to say. There could be more but I would have to say I would put my money on Izzy on offense and Noah Larson and Blubaugh on defense based on need. I think Greibel and McKinney may be locked in for a redshirt year now, based on the number of reps they're missing this camp. Kind of like when Reyes hurt his hand his true freshman year. I think had that not happened, Reyes would have been done after last year.

[geaux_sioux]

Finally made it out to a practice. It was a beautiful morning with enough sun to keep the impressive number of fans warm but just enough wispy cloud to cool it down every so often.  It was really nice to see the level of interest in a practice from the fans. SID Ryan Powell was kind enough to hand out rosters which, for guys like me who haven't been to a practice yet, was a huge help to see which new guy was making the play.

I'll start with the wet blanket stuff.  Mckinney with a cast on his right wrist was a bummer. I was really hoping to see his jets today. 

Jade Laurence wasn't participating, not sure if it was an injury thing or not. He wasn't limping around and had no hardware on. 

Greibel, another guy I wanted to see in action was also out in a similar capacity to Laurence.

Randolph was walking around on the sideline with no limp and no brace on. 

Murray is playing very slow out there. Not sure if he just plays like that or if his head is swimming in the playbook but for a guy with 4.4 speed he plays SLOW and soft out there. I hope it’s just that he’s thinking instead of predicting because we need the depth at ILB.

Mindless does not have his swing yet. You can tell he’s pressing really hard to be the starter. Kicking is just like golf, he’s going to need to relax if he’s going to be the starter.

Studsrud didn’t look very good throwing the ball today. He was missing badly on a lot of throws; nice spirals, but missing his targets. Not sure if this was due to the defense knowing the 1s were just passing or what but he needs to not start the season the way he did last year.

Johannesson is a specimen, however, I am worried that he runs soft most of the time. His pad level is not good and he doesn’t explode into contact the way a back his size should. He appeared to be the nail more often than not today. He does do a good job of falling forward and making the pile move a bit but when he is head on with a linebacker he runs into them instead of exploding through them the way Brady does. Worst of all he “got his bell rung” and was checked out by the trainers. The trainer did some quick concussion testing and then told something to Rudolph who did not react positively. James did not go back in and seemed a bit out of it. Not good.

Now for the good stuff. Blubaugh looked really nice out there. Very sudden feet and great eyes. He also looks thick enough to hold up which is huge. He blanketed guys often today, often 2nd or 3rd teamer but still, he looked really good.

Tyus Carter was out there with the ones and made a few nice plays including swatting a ball out of the air that he probably could have picked off. Nice to see him out there.

All about the Ray Haas bandwagon! Wow! I’m curious how he did not end up with a PAC12 offer. He just looks different out there. The height and length are obvious from the start but it’s how fluid and aggressive he is that is going to make him special. There was one play in particular where he absolutely eclipsed the QB and ate the ball. There was no chance any QB would have completed the play the way he got in there. You can tell by the way his teammates react to him that they know he is going to be special.

Noah Larson was in there a lot today throughout the entire scrimmage. He looks strong but appears to still be thinking as he plays a bit. Tough to gage him off of this one performance as he didn’t make any huge splash plays but also didn’t make any noticeable mistakes. 

Mason Bennett is ready for this year. He absolutely blew a play up in the backfield. He exploded off the ball and the OL had no chance of stopping him. Consistency will be his thing this year because we all know he has a ridiculous ceiling. 

It was nice to see Bennet Hellgren out at LT today. He looked really solid. Good to see from a guy that hasn’t really been out there competing yet and came in with great promise.

The centers did a solid job on the slaps all day. 

Nevermann looked really good at LB today. He basically killed an entire series on his own, knifing into the backfield with great speed and anticipation. He could be a nice surprise for us this year.

Andre Stieger also was noticeable out there today. He’s not a huge guy like Haas but he has that desirable combo of high motor and good instincts. He was around the ball all day and made some nice plays. I hadn’t seen him play yet and he was a very nice surprise. 

Those 3 true fr DL look nice, real nice. They are big and strong and fast. Can’t wait to see them in the future. Ott still has that first step that we all saw on his film and is bigger than I was expecting.

Heidlebaugh looked pretty decent today. He still has a LONNNNNG motion and the ball doesn’t really jump out of his hand but he was solid. 

Zimmerman put the other QBs to shame today. Going against the non first team defense certainly helped but his throws were quick, tight, and on the money. The ball spins out of his hand in a really smooth way. If he can get the playbook down well enough I would expect him to overtake Brad.

Kettingham struggled a little today. He certainly looks the part but had a couple loose throws at first. He then settled in and had a few nice ones.

Boltmann isn’t very tall but he’s thicker than I thought he would be. Throws a really nice ball and moves around in the packet really well. The defense was getting a little salty about him taking off and running when nobody was open but I liked the fact that he didn’t try and force the ball like a lot of young QBs tend to do.

Cieslak is a moose. For a 300lb DL to move like that is scary. If his shoulder holds up he will be all conference at the very least. 

Izzy made a bunch of catches today. He’s not big but he is defiantly fast enough to make an impact. I was a little bummed that I didn’t get to see him open it up in space and turn on the jets but he is certainly quick and sudden. Had solid hands as well.

The first team defense and offense as a whole looked the part today. The d is FAST and confident. They have that same predatory nature they had last year. 

Our DL is DEEP. That unit goes 4 deep at some spots and there isn’t a huge drop off. Really impressive how the coaches have built up that group. They are the foundation of the entire team.

The OL wasn’t bad today. At times the backups got eaten alive but our DL is going to do that a lot this year. The starters were solid and some of the second string guys looked like the belong. Need this group to get up to the level of the DL. 

We have a few guys that could be on the MN All Hockey Hair team. Fiedler could be a captain of that team.

Doused looked really good punting today. Had the sound that you are looking for and had really good hang time. Like I said before, Meindel has a long way to go to unseat him based on what I saw today.

IMPACT player of the day has to be GF native and former Red River Rat Chad Bartosh. He got loose early on a tricky little play similar to the one USD burned us on last year. Made the basket catch and got about 60 yards before getting caught from behind. Later in the play he just about took down the goalpost on a redzone play. Took the term post pattern a little too literally and totally committed to the hospital pass the qb threw. He laid a post shattering hit on the goalpost and kept on running. 

Overall the team wasn't as sharp as I was hoping for but I did see plenty of things that the coaches can work with to make this season a success. Tough to really know when we didn't get to see the true 1's vs 1's.

[Midwestern Hawk]

20 minutes ago, geaux_sioux said:

Finally made it out to a practice. It was a beautiful morning with enough sun to keep the impressive number of fans warm but just enough wispy cloud to cool it down every so often.  It was really nice to see the level of interest in a practice from the fans. SID Ryan Powell was kind enough to hand out rosters which, for guys like me who haven't been to a practice yet, was a huge help to see which new guy was making the play.

I'll start with the wet blanket stuff.  Mckinney with a cast on his right wrist was a bummer. I was really hoping to see his jets today. 

Jade Laurence wasn't participating, not sure if it was an injury thing or not. He wasn't limping around and had no hardware on. 

Greibel, another guy I wanted to see in action was also out in a similar capacity to Laurence.

Randolph was walking around on the sideline with no limp and no brace on. 

Murray is playing very slow out there. Not sure if he just plays like that or if his head is swimming in the playbook but for a guy with 4.4 speed he plays SLOW and soft out there. I hope it’s just that he’s thinking instead of predicting because we need the depth at ILB.

Mindless does not have his swing yet. You can tell he’s pressing really hard to be the starter. Kicking is just like golf, he’s going to need to relax if he’s going to be the starter.

Studsrud didn’t look very good throwing the ball today. He was missing badly on a lot of throws; nice spirals, but missing his targets. Not sure if this was due to the defense knowing the 1s were just passing or what but he needs to not start the season the way he did last year.

Johannesson is a specimen, however, I am worried that he runs soft most of the time. His pad level is not good and he doesn’t explode into contact the way a back his size should. He appeared to be the nail more often than not today. He does do a good job of falling forward and making the pile move a bit but when he is head on with a linebacker he runs into them instead of exploding through them the way Brady does. Worst of all he “got his bell rung” and was checked out by the trainers. The trainer did some quick concussion testing and then told something to Rudolph who did not react positively. James did not go back in and seemed a bit out of it. Not good.

Now for the good stuff. Blubaugh looked really nice out there. Very sudden feet and great eyes. He also looks thick enough to hold up which is huge. He blanketed guys often today, often 2nd or 3rd teamer but still, he looked really good.

Tyus Carter was out there with the ones and made a few nice plays including swatting a ball out of the air that he probably could have picked off. Nice to see him out there.

All about the Ray Haas bandwagon! Wow! I’m curious how he did not end up with a PAC12 offer. He just looks different out there. The height and length are obvious from the start but it’s how fluid and aggressive he is that is going to make him special. There was one play in particular where he absolutely eclipsed the QB and ate the ball. There was no chance any QB would have completed the play the way he got in there. You can tell by the way his teammates react to him that they know he is going to be special.

Noah Larson was in there a lot today throughout the entire scrimmage. He looks strong but appears to still be thinking as he plays a bit. Tough to gage him off of this one performance as he didn’t make any huge splash plays but also didn’t make any noticeable mistakes. 

Mason Bennett is ready for this year. He absolutely blew a play up in the backfield. He exploded off the ball and the OL had no chance of stopping him. Consistency will be his thing this year because we all know he has a ridiculous ceiling. 

It was nice to see Bennet Hellgren out at LT today. He looked really solid. Good to see from a guy that hasn’t really been out there competing yet and came in with great promise.

The centers did a solid job on the slaps all day. 

Nevermann looked really good at LB today. He basically killed an entire series on his own, knifing into the backfield with great speed and anticipation. He could be a nice surprise for us this year.

Andre Stieger also was noticeable out there today. He’s not a huge guy like Haas but he has that desirable combo of high motor and good instincts. He was around the ball all day and made some nice plays. I hadn’t seen him play yet and he was a very nice surprise. 

Those 3 true fr DL look nice, real nice. They are big and strong and fast. Can’t wait to see them in the future. Ott still has that first step that we all saw on his film and is bigger than I was expecting.

Heidlebaugh looked pretty decent today. He still has a LONNNNNG motion and the ball doesn’t really jump out of his hand but he was solid. 

Zimmerman put the other QBs to shame today. Going against the non first team defense certainly helped but his throws were quick, tight, and on the money. The ball spins out of his hand in a really smooth way. If he can get the playbook down well enough I would expect him to overtake Brad.

Kettingham struggled a little today. He certainly looks the part but had a couple loose throws at first. He then settled in and had a few nice ones.

Boltmann isn’t very tall but he’s thicker than I thought he would be. Throws a really nice ball and moves around in the packet really well. The defense was getting a little salty about him taking off and running when nobody was open but I liked the fact that he didn’t try and force the ball like a lot of young QBs tend to do.

Cieslak is a moose. For a 300lb DL to move like that is scary. If his shoulder holds up he will be all conference at the very least. 

Izzy made a bunch of catches today. He’s not big but he is defiantly fast enough to make an impact. I was a little bummed that I didn’t get to see him open it up in space and turn on the jets but he is certainly quick and sudden. Had solid hands as well.

The first team defense and offense as a whole looked the part today. The d is FAST and confident. They have that same predatory nature they had last year. 

Our DL is DEEP. That unit goes 4 deep at some spots and there isn’t a huge drop off. Really impressive how the coaches have built up that group. They are the foundation of the entire team.

The OL wasn’t bad today. At times the backups got eaten alive but our DL is going to do that a lot this year. The starters were solid and some of the second string guys looked like the belong. Need this group to get up to the level of the DL. 

We have a few guys that could be on the MN All Hockey Hair team. Fiedler could be a captain of that team.

Doused looked really good punting today. Had the sound that you are looking for and had really good hang time. Like I said before, Meindel has a long way to go to unseat him based on what I saw today.

IMPACT player of the day has to be GF native and former Red River Rat Chad Bartosh. He got loose early on a tricky little play similar to the one USD burned us on last year. Made the basket catch and got about 60 yards before getting caught from behind. Later in the play he just about took down the goalpost on a redzone play. Took the term post pattern a little too literally and totally committed to the hospital pass the qb threw. He laid a post shattering hit on the goalpost and kept on running. 

Overall the team wasn't as sharp as I was hoping for but I did see plenty of things that the coaches can work with to make this season a success. Tough to really know when we didn't get to see the true 1's vs 1's.

Another great report thanks for the insight!

[FSForever]

32 minutes ago, geaux_sioux said:

Finally made it out to a practice. It was a beautiful morning with enough sun to keep the impressive number of fans warm but just enough wispy cloud to cool it down every so often.  It was really nice to see the level of interest in a practice from the fans. SID Ryan Powell was kind enough to hand out rosters which, for guys like me who haven't been to a practice yet, was a huge help to see which new guy was making the play.

I'll start with the wet blanket stuff.  Mckinney with a cast on his right wrist was a bummer. I was really hoping to see his jets today. 

Jade Laurence wasn't participating, not sure if it was an injury thing or not. He wasn't limping around and had no hardware on. 

Greibel, another guy I wanted to see in action was also out in a similar capacity to Laurence.

Randolph was walking around on the sideline with no limp and no brace on. 

Murray is playing very slow out there. Not sure if he just plays like that or if his head is swimming in the playbook but for a guy with 4.4 speed he plays SLOW and soft out there. I hope it’s just that he’s thinking instead of predicting because we need the depth at ILB.

Mindless does not have his swing yet. You can tell he’s pressing really hard to be the starter. Kicking is just like golf, he’s going to need to relax if he’s going to be the starter.

Studsrud didn’t look very good throwing the ball today. He was missing badly on a lot of throws; nice spirals, but missing his targets. Not sure if this was due to the defense knowing the 1s were just passing or what but he needs to not start the season the way he did last year.

Johannesson is a specimen, however, I am worried that he runs soft most of the time. His pad level is not good and he doesn’t explode into contact the way a back his size should. He appeared to be the nail more often than not today. He does do a good job of falling forward and making the pile move a bit but when he is head on with a linebacker he runs into them instead of exploding through them the way Brady does. Worst of all he “got his bell rung” and was checked out by the trainers. The trainer did some quick concussion testing and then told something to Rudolph who did not react positively. James did not go back in and seemed a bit out of it. Not good.

Now for the good stuff. Blubaugh looked really nice out there. Very sudden feet and great eyes. He also looks thick enough to hold up which is huge. He blanketed guys often today, often 2nd or 3rd teamer but still, he looked really good.

Tyus Carter was out there with the ones and made a few nice plays including swatting a ball out of the air that he probably could have picked off. Nice to see him out there.

All about the Ray Haas bandwagon! Wow! I’m curious how he did not end up with a PAC12 offer. He just looks different out there. The height and length are obvious from the start but it’s how fluid and aggressive he is that is going to make him special. There was one play in particular where he absolutely eclipsed the QB and ate the ball. There was no chance any QB would have completed the play the way he got in there. You can tell by the way his teammates react to him that they know he is going to be special.

Noah Larson was in there a lot today throughout the entire scrimmage. He looks strong but appears to still be thinking as he plays a bit. Tough to gage him off of this one performance as he didn’t make any huge splash plays but also didn’t make any noticeable mistakes. 

Mason Bennett is ready for this year. He absolutely blew a play up in the backfield. He exploded off the ball and the OL had no chance of stopping him. Consistency will be his thing this year because we all know he has a ridiculous ceiling. 

It was nice to see Bennet Hellgren out at LT today. He looked really solid. Good to see from a guy that hasn’t really been out there competing yet and came in with great promise.

The centers did a solid job on the slaps all day. 

Nevermann looked really good at LB today. He basically killed an entire series on his own, knifing into the backfield with great speed and anticipation. He could be a nice surprise for us this year.

Andre Stieger also was noticeable out there today. He’s not a huge guy like Haas but he has that desirable combo of high motor and good instincts. He was around the ball all day and made some nice plays. I hadn’t seen him play yet and he was a very nice surprise. 

Those 3 true fr DL look nice, real nice. They are big and strong and fast. Can’t wait to see them in the future. Ott still has that first step that we all saw on his film and is bigger than I was expecting.

Heidlebaugh looked pretty decent today. He still has a LONNNNNG motion and the ball doesn’t really jump out of his hand but he was solid. 

Zimmerman put the other QBs to shame today. Going against the non first team defense certainly helped but his throws were quick, tight, and on the money. The ball spins out of his hand in a really smooth way. If he can get the playbook down well enough I would expect him to overtake Brad.

Kettingham struggled a little today. He certainly looks the part but had a couple loose throws at first. He then settled in and had a few nice ones.

Boltmann isn’t very tall but he’s thicker than I thought he would be. Throws a really nice ball and moves around in the packet really well. The defense was getting a little salty about him taking off and running when nobody was open but I liked the fact that he didn’t try and force the ball like a lot of young QBs tend to do.

Cieslak is a moose. For a 300lb DL to move like that is scary. If his shoulder holds up he will be all conference at the very least. 

Izzy made a bunch of catches today. He’s not big but he is defiantly fast enough to make an impact. I was a little bummed that I didn’t get to see him open it up in space and turn on the jets but he is certainly quick and sudden. Had solid hands as well.

The first team defense and offense as a whole looked the part today. The d is FAST and confident. They have that same predatory nature they had last year. 

Our DL is DEEP. That unit goes 4 deep at some spots and there isn’t a huge drop off. Really impressive how the coaches have built up that group. They are the foundation of the entire team.

The OL wasn’t bad today. At times the backups got eaten alive but our DL is going to do that a lot this year. The starters were solid and some of the second string guys looked like the belong. Need this group to get up to the level of the DL. 

We have a few guys that could be on the MN All Hockey Hair team. Fiedler could be a captain of that team.

Doused looked really good punting today. Had the sound that you are looking for and had really good hang time. Like I said before, Meindel has a long way to go to unseat him based on what I saw today.

IMPACT player of the day has to be GF native and former Red River Rat Chad Bartosh. He got loose early on a tricky little play similar to the one USD burned us on last year. Made the basket catch and got about 60 yards before getting caught from behind. Later in the play he just about took down the goalpost on a redzone play. Took the term post pattern a little too literally and totally committed to the hospital pass the qb threw. He laid a post shattering hit on the goalpost and kept on running. 

Overall the team wasn't as sharp as I was hoping for but I did see plenty of things that the coaches can work with to make this season a success. Tough to really know when we didn't get to see the true 1's vs 1's.

Any observations on the fullbacks?

[Teeder11]

13 minutes ago, Midwestern Hawk said:

Another great report thanks for the insight!

I agree!

[Teeder11]

1 minute ago, FSForever said:

Any observations on the fullbacks?

Coyne scored a TD On a broken play. 

[Midwestern Hawk]

What do you two(Geax sioux and teeder11) think at ilb?  I'm assuming Rodgers looked solid because no comments either way.  Who will other 3 ilb be?  What about geier?  Is disterhaupt still taking reps there?

[geaux_sioux]

18 minutes ago, FSForever said:

Any observations on the fullbacks?

Other than great hair and big muscles?

[geaux_sioux]

11 minutes ago, Midwestern Hawk said:

What do you two(Geax sioux and teeder11) think at ilb?  I'm assuming Rodgers looked solid because no comments either way.  Who will other 3 ilb be?  What about geier?  Is disterhaupt still taking reps there?

Tender can probably break that down better since he is more familiar with the numbers, my head was spinning a little trying to keep the new guys straight, but Nevermann looked really good today against the backups. Like I said Larson didn't do anything spectacular but he didn't have any blunders. Rodgers is a stud. Murray did not look good to me, like I said, hopefully it's about getting the playbook to be second nature that's his problem. Not sure on Rastas or Geier. 

[Sioux94]

Awesome write up Teeder, thanks!   What are your overall thoughts on the OL?   To me that is still a big question mark.  Sounds like they started out slow, but did ok later?  And that was against the 2's right as the first team DL was out (granted our 2's play a lot on the DL).   Going up against Utah's stout DL may make for some really tough sledding in that first game.  

[FSForever]

43 minutes ago, geaux_sioux said:

Other than great hair and big muscles?

Yes, what more do you need, right?!?